Amanda Carr

Boston born daughter of Big Band vocalist, Nancy Carr and trumpet player, Nick Capezuto, Amanda Carr is a multi-styled vocalist/pianist that, although began early on in the rock and pop genre has more recently focused on fresh interpretations of the Great American Songbook, following in her parent’s musical footsteps. For three decades she has recorded and performed internationally, adding her own musical gems as well which have received critical acclaim from a tough bevy of jazz reviewers including 4-stars from All Music Guide,Jazz Review.com donned her “…a first rate vocalist” and she was featured and praised by Nat Hentoff in a back-page story/article in the September 2007 issue of The Wall Street Journal.

Boston born daughter of Big Band vocalist, Nancy Carr and trumpet player, Nick Capezuto, Amanda Carr is a multi-styled vocalist/pianist that, although began early on in the rock and pop genre has more recently focused on fresh interpretations of the Great American Songbook, following in her parent’s musical footsteps. For three decades she has recorded and performed internationally, adding her own musical gems as well which have received critical acclaim from a tough bevy of jazz reviewers including 4-stars from All Music Guide,Jazz Review.com donned her “…a first rate vocalist” and she was featured and praised by Nat Hentoff in a back-page story/article in the September 2007 issue of The Wall Street Journal.

Among her many performances,she is currently starring in “A Tribute to Peggy Lee and Benny Goodman” with the Everett Longstreth Orchestra., starting an official U.S. Tour in 2008, traveling to various states and cities nationwide with this 14 -piece big band. Amanda frequently is the featured vocalist with The Artie Shaw Orchestra (led by Dick Johnson), Harry James Orchestra (Fred Radke) and has appeared with the Glenn Miller Band (Larry O'Brien).

Boston based daughter of a big band vocalist and trumpeter (Nick Capezuto, most known for Herb Pomeroy Band), Amanda Carr is a multi-styled vocalist/pianist that began early on in her teens in the rock and pop genre, but has in recent years focused on fresh interpretations of the Great American Songbook, following in her parent’s musical footsteps. For over three decades she’s performed and recorded both in the U.S. and Italy. Both her and her CD’s have received critical acclaim from a tough bevy of jazz reviewers. Her 2005 recording, TENDER TRAP debuted on the National Jazz Charts at 55 and received 4-stars from All Music Guide. Her follow-up recording in 2007 was a feature story by Nat Hentoff in The Wall Street Journal which catapulted her to global exposure with sales and airplay. She’s also featured in Nat Hentoff’s upcoming Biography, “At the Jazz Band Ball: 60 Years on the Jazz Scene” due out in 2010 (Univ. of California Press)

Among her varied performances, she stars in “A Tribute to Peggy Lee and Benny Goodman” a big band show that has travelled to various cities nationwide completing a 30-date 2008-09 touring season. Amanda has been featured with The Artie Shaw Orchestra, Harry James Band and has also appeared with the Glenn Miller Band among her many other guest vocal appearances. In 1998, she headlined at the EuroJazz Festival in Italy along with James Moody and George Mraz, returning the following year to record “Live in San Giorgio” with Trio Martinale. Amanda has composed and performed award-winning music for two PBS documentaries and received an Emmy nomination for “The Story of Golf”, a CBS special narrated by Jim McKay. She’s won awards for her musical contributions to “Boston Red Sox: 100 Years of Baseball History”. In 1999 she was awarded the Videographer Award by the NTA for excellence in Music Composition in addition to her multiple“Telly’s”. She has dozens of T.V. and Radio commercials to her credit and owns and operates a successful recording studio in the Boston area along with the OMS record label.

Among her own recordings, her eclectic album credits include the late Dave Guard from the Kingston Trio on his final album “Up & In”, a year long project in the early 1980’s. Since then she has a long list of album credits as both a music composer and a vocalist. Along with 4 other CD releases since 1995, Amanda is releasing a big band CD “Common Thread” in October of ‘09, which is the third project with drummer/producer Kenny Hadley. Their previous effort, SOON, soared on Amazon’s Jazz Bestseller list at #2 and remained on their Top 100 for weeks. With distribution and airplay in over a dozen countries, including Japan and the Netherlands, and a growing International fanship, Amanda continues to perform with her own group and is becoming a popular guest vocalist with many other ensembles. This new Big Band record features the works of Grammy-winnning arrangers like Bob Freedman and world-class players like trumpeter, Lin Biviano. Amanda is the CEO of the newly formed not for profit organization American Big Band Preservation Society, Inc. which has a mission of preserving and promoting Big Band music through performance and education and aquiring a library of unpublished Big Band arrangements to share with the public. Please visit www.AmericanBigBand.ORG

“Many of the most resoundingly exciting sounds in music
and joyous rhythms
came from the big jazz bands. They are still alive in the new
CD, “Common
Thread’....” Nat Hentoff

“...Common Thread is a class act... the complete package
packed with local
stars and stars-to-be, and not to be missed by any jazz fan.”
Kevin Convey, THE BOSTON HERALD

“... The swing is undeniable, her freedom around the beat,
the aptness of her
phrasing, her ability to blend with the other musicians.”
Jon Garelick THE BOSTON PHOENIX

WALL STREET JOURNAL “Amanda Carr, a true jazz
singer in a time of
wannabes. . . she sings and swings with the unaffected
confidence of a
genuine jazz improviser. Unlike some of the present alleged
jazz vocalists,
Ms. Carr does not try to imitate a horn. She is an authentic
musician in the
front line with her longtime colleagues on Soon!” Nat
Hentoff  9/5/2007

JAZZ IMPROV MAGAZINE While a “new standards”
movement has been
brewing for a while, there are still plenty of musicians
guarding and
promoting the old chestnuts from the Great American
Songbook. Vocalist
Amanda Carr is one such person.. and she does so with
great style and
class.... While the popularity and longevity of these songs is
based on their
lyrical and musical content, the ultimate success lies in the
delivery and Carr
proves to be an ace in this department. Dan Bilawsky
2008

L.A. JAZZ SCENE November 2007 Amanda Carr gives the
Great American
Songbook quite and uplifting interpretation.... She’s
original!!... this singer is
well on her way to international renown. Soon predicts her
future with
certainty... Carr has the right stuff, and her album proves
that beyond a
doubt. Jim Santella

TOKYO Jazz Critique Magazine, November 2007 “...
although the CD jacket is
really wonderful, the music inside is even better. This is one
of the best
records I’ve purchased recently. ...Amanda has “real”
singing ability and
treats the material in a delightfully unique way. …It’s hard not
to like her
voice on everything she sings.” Iwanami

THE NEW YORK SUN “….Amanda Carr, a talented female
vocalist” Will
Friedwald

THE HARTFORD COURANT, “…Amanda Carr is a rare
singer who gets inside a
song's lyrics, convincing you that all the emotions expressed
have actually
been lived by her. ..she never goes for overkill, that common
compulsion to
mercilessly inflict every single item in your musical tool kit on
your audience
as if you're competing on American Idol. Carr finds
success without excess.
… Carr and her partners in swing are a true collective, a
musical family.
Seasoned pros, they checked their egos but not their
creativity at the door.”
Owen McNally 11/07

“...A voice that was meant to sing in this genre.... She’s fast
emerging from a
hidden jewel to a shining gem!” - Ernie Santosuosso, 
The Boston Globe

BOSTON HERALD “.....From the oversize gig to the warm
confines of a jazz
club, last evening I sat and watched Amanda Carr sing a mix
of standards and
lesser known tunes that prove beyond a shadow of a doubt
the power of
desire. Her voice is like a soft blanket that surrounds you
and instantly
provides a sense of comfort and contentment. Blessed with
a wonderful
range, you hear every word, and the lowest notes are the
sweetest. The pop
culture landscape may be filled to the brim with fakers who
can’t hold a note,
but Amanda Carr is the real thing, and yes, I would pay to
hear her sing the
phone book.” - Tai Irwin 11/06

FOUR STARS: All MUSIC GUIDE!!! “With so many female
vocalists releasing new
jazz CDs in a given year, it is extremely difficult to grab
one's attention;
Amanda Carr's CD, though released by a small label, has
the ingredients
necessary to do so......Amanda Carr deserves greater
attention in the jazz
world.  Ken Dryden

ALL ABOUT JAZZ.com “Recently, I had the pleasure of
hearing Ms. Carr
perform an impromptu duet with the great jazz vocalist
Giacomo Gates at
Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola in New York… I was so impressed
by her talent, spirit
and onstage charm that I felt compelled to pick up her latest
CD. I'm very
glad I did.”  Nick Mondello

RADIOPHONE, GREECE As an offspring of jazz musicians
the Bostonian singer
knew how to choose classical songs from the American
repertoire to present
in her forth album. The compositions she opted for are the
ones with which
the average listener would confirm the jazz perform
stereotype.. Her new
release is exceptional and has received a great response.
George Politopoulis,
October 2007

RHAPSODY.com “Amanda is a very good jazz singer who
displays Carmen
McRae's control and Diana Krall's sporty good looks She is
more daring than
Krall.getting into Bop, but like McRae Carr keeps the
experimentation focused
on the song at hand. Along with standards, Carr has written
a few tasty
originals.”  Nick Dedina

JAZZREVIEW.com Female jazz vocalists seem all the
rage at the moment, yet
despite this fact, few seem to gain much attention from the
general
public....Her warm alto voice coupled with her expressive
phrasing make her
a first-rate vocalist.....Carr’s fine delivery and easy swinging
style elevates
what could be standard jazz vocal album to an exceptional
listening
experience. This is one CD that I’m sure you’ll play over and
over again. 
Lawrence Williams

“ Amanda Carr has captivated Italy with her voice, charm
and personality. We
are insatiable for her”, Sergio Gioletti, La Sentinella Italia

JAZZ MATINEE Amanda Carr, jazz vocalist, has raised
the bar on interpreting
the American Songbook! In her fourth excursion as leader,
Soon, she avoids
the common practices of excessive scatting, melody
altering and
emotionalism. Amanda's understated, comfortable approach
and shear vocal
beauty urge you to keep listening…Soon rises to the top of
an ocean of new
vocal CDs. If you don't pick it up Soon, you might be too
late. Monica
Hatch, Vocalist & Host of Radio 90.5 FM (npr)

RHAPSODY.com “Amanda is a very good jazz singer who
displays Carmen
McRae's control and Diana Krall's sporty good looks She is
more daring than
Krall.getting into Bop, but like McRae Carr keeps the
experimentation focused
on the song at hand. Along with standards, Carr has written
a few tasty
originals.”  Nick Dedina

SOUNDS OF TIMELESS JAZZ.com Amanda Carr has a
wonderful voice and with
her 'dinner-party' ambient style, you're sure to return to the
CD after the
guests are all gone for your own late night understanding.
Her melding of
intimate sound, seductive phrasings and satisfying tones
are unique and with
her fresh style, she is sure to tantalize a few more fans into
her ever growing
den of lyricism. Jason Moran

EARBUZZ.COM “Siren and smooth vocal delivery, in the
style of the mid 20th
century crooners, complete with the edge of rasp that can
denote cigarette
and martini lifestyles is the gist of the wonderful, Amanda
Carr's, CD Tender
Trap. Add the deft professional singing ability and
musicianship of her band,
to her obvious attractive presence - and you have the best
of all worlds -
great music, great voice, and a live stage performance that
is easy on the ears
and the eyes.”

“Amanda Carr dazzled the audience with the music of
Peggy Lee at a sold-
out performance in the Carr Amphitheater.” .. Laura
Carleton, South Shore
Conservatory

“Carr negotiates key changes with perfect intonation with a
voice that is warm
and unpretentious. Her down-to-earth stage presence and
interesting
introductions put the audience at ease immediately - no
small feat for a
singer.” Cape Cod Times